JRL NEWSWATCH: “Security strongmen take on key role in Russian Arctic policy” – The Barents Observer (Norway)/ Atle Staalesen
“The Russian Security Council is given an expanded position in the management of national interests in the Arctic.”
“According to a[n] [Aug. 25] decree signed by … Putin … the [Russian] Security Council is to establish a special commission … promot[ing] Russian national interests in the far northern region[,] [a]mong its responsibilities … ‘analysis of the international and social-economic situation in the Arctic zone.’ … includ[ing] … military-political issues …. The Commission will … ‘evaluate progress in [the] development of national strategic priorities in the region and help reveal domestic and external threats to national security.’ … The Russian Security Council has … actively engaged … Arctic issues [for several years]. … The Russian Security Council is headed by … Putin. Among its 12 permanent members are key representatives of the Russian top power and law enforcement authorities. …”